The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses shows that the same basic principles of psychology that work for board games, card games and athletic games also are the keys to making top-quality video games. Good game design happens when you view your game from many different perspectives, or lenses. While touring through the unusual territory that is game design, this book gives the reader one hundred of these lenses—one hundred sets of insightful questions to ask yourself that will help make your game better. These lenses are gathered from fields as diverse as psychology, architecture, music, visual design, film, software engineering, theme park design, mathematics, writing, puzzle design, and anthropology. Anyone who reads this book will be inspired to become a better game designer—and will understand how to do it.

    The guide also features short “Flashback” box-outs that briefly introduce characters as they appear in the storyline.Developed on-site at Kojima Productions in Tokyo, this complete guide has dedicated chapters on Basics, Controls, Items, Weapons, Camouflage, Enemies, Secrets and Metal Gear Online. Contains original and exclusive artwork.

    This design workshop begins with an examination of the fundamental elements of game design; then puts you to work in prototyping, playtesting and redesigning your own games with exercises that teach essential design skills. Workshop exercises require no background in programming or artwork, releasing you from the intricacies of electronic game production, so you can develop a working understanding of the essentials of game design.Features:* A design methodology used in the USC Interactive Media program, a cutting edge program funded in part of Electronic Arts. * Hands-on exercises demonstrate key concepts, and the design methodology* Insights from top industry game designers, including Noah Falstein, American McGee, Peter Molyneux

    It emphasizes the broad view of a games team and teaches you enough about your teammates' areas so that you can work effectively with them. The authors have included many worksheets and exercises to help get your small indie team off the ground. Special features: Exercises at the end of each chapter combine comprehension tests with problems that help the reader interact with the materialWorksheet exercises provide creative activities to help project teams generate new ideas and then structure them in a modified version of the format of a game industry design documentPointers to the best resources for digging deeper into each specialized area of game developmentWebsite with worksheets, figures from the book, and teacher materials including study guides, lecture presentations, syllabi, supplemental exercises, and assessment materials

    Specifically addressing the unique needs of managers in the game industry, this book recognizes a common issue: game development teams consisting of talented specialists who lack interpersonal and leadership skills. Filled with tips and advice from industry pros, you'll learn how to solve problems such as selecting your team, defining roles and identifying team leaders, meeting deadlines, and handling underperformers. You'll examine classic leadership traits, and take a look at specific team roles and their daily responsibilities. Real-world case studies illustrate solutions to each problem and hands-on exercises will help you practice the techniques presented. Team Leadership in the Game Industry provides you with a valuable set of best practices and advice to help you achieve efficient, cohesive teams.

    And yet game sound has been neglected in the growing literature on game studies. This book fills that gap, introducing readers to the many complex aspects of game audio, from its development in early games to theoretical discussions of immersion and realism. In Game Sound, Karen Collins draws on a range of sources--including composers, sound designers, voice-over actors and other industry professionals, Internet articles, fan sites, industry conferences, magazines, patent documents, and, of course, the games themselves--to offer a broad overview of the history, theory, and production practice of video game audio. Game Sound has two underlying themes: how and why games are different from or similar to film or other linear audiovisual media; and technology and the constraints it has placed on the production of game audio. Collins focuses first on the historical development of game audio, from penny arcades through the rise of home games and the recent rapid developments in the industry. She then examines the production process for a contemporary game at a large game company, discussing the roles of composers, sound designers, voice talent, and audio programmers; considers the growing presence of licensed intellectual property (particularly popular music and films) in games; and explores the function of audio in games in theoretical terms. Finally, she discusses the difficulties posed by nonlinearity and interactivity for the composer of game music.

    The contributors are some of the most renowned scholars working on video games today including Henry Jenkins, Jesper Juul, Eric Zimmerman, and Mia Consalvo. While the first volume had a strong focus on early video games, this volume also addresses more contemporary issues such as convergence and MMORPGs. The volume concludes with an appendix of nearly 40 ideas and concepts from a variety of theories and disciplines that have been usefully and insightfully applied to the study of video games.

    This volume contains more than a dozen crucial essays to help you succeed in freelancing, playtest, and publication:The Art of the PitchChallenging PlayersFreelance Discipline, AKA Talent Won't Save YouHow to Run a Playtest with Real ResultsDesign From the Bottom UpWhat Playtest Teaches YouMystery AdventuresCreating Play DepthHow NOT to Design a Magic ItemFortunate AccidentsHow to Make Your Design MatterHow to Sell Designs and Influence EditorsThis 96-page collection of essays—many previously presented only to patrons of OPEN DESIGN—is now available to the public for the first time. Improve your design — and your odds of publication — today!

    It presents an essential background in child development and child psychology, particularly as they relate to technology; captures best practices for observing and surveying children, training evaluators, and capturing the child user experience using audio and visual technology; and examines ethical and legal issues involved in working with children and offers guidelines for effective risk management.Based on the authors' workshops, conference courses, and own design experience and research, this highly practical book reads like a handbook, while being thoroughly grounded in the latest research. Throughout, the authors illustrate techniques and principles with numerous mini case studies and highlight practical information in tips and exercises and conclude with three in-depth case studies.This book is recommended for usability experts, product developers, and researchers in the field.

    Fully revised and updated to reflect the rapidly evolving game development landscape, the third edition of this definitive and best-selling text covers pre-production, production, testing, and code release, as well as more specific topics including voiceovers, mo-cap shoots, marketing, localizations, managing external contractors, writing documentation, and project management practices. All-new material in the third edition includes new sections on mobile gaming and product management, an overview of useful production tools, and new interviews with industry professionals who offer an insider's view of successful game development as well as highly relevant real-world examples that contextualize the resources provided by the text. A detailed case study of a fictitious game project illustrates the production cycle, documentation, and other key production concepts. Accessible enough for beginners and comprehensive enough for experienced developers, The Game Production Handbook, Third Edition is an invaluable standalone text for students and professionals alike. Prepare students to successfully enter the exciting world of game development with The Game Production Handbook, Third Edition. New to the Third Edition: -Offers new interviews with industry experts who discuss insider knowledge and real world examples of what works and what doesn't work in game development. -Contains new sections on product management, audio as it relates to the production process, financing options, and the latest relevant production tools.